"Pills and Ammo," the new album he is releasing with his longtime band the Asbury Jukes, is a collection of lean, Rolling Stones-oriented rock 'n' roll -- arguably the hardest-rocking set the band has released in its 35 years of recording. On a beautiful mid-May afternoon, I talked, by phone, with the 61-year-old Shore rock legend and Ocean Grove resident about the album, his career and his upcoming shows.

A. It's funny, I really want to promote the new album. I've had my heart crushed a number of times, so it's hard to get up. But you know, I feel like it's been a long winter, a lot of snow, not a lot of work, and now I'm ready to go out and bust my brains out.

Q. I guess the shorthand description of this album is that it's your most guitar-rock oriented album.

A. It was a conscious decision to have two guitars, and really feature guitars. The funny thing is, I wrote all the songs with my keyboard player (Jeff Kazee). When we went into last winter, I thought, you know, people are down, I'm down, we need something to jump-start us, and the only thing I can do is make music. So I thought it was time for more of a kick-ass rock 'n' roll record than R&B and soul stuff. Not that that's not fun, but I wanted something a little more aggressive, but still more roots-oriented than the guitar-hero stuff.

Also I heard some of the Stones stuff. There was talk of reissuing "Exile on Main St.," and I had just gotten a new copy of "Sticky Fingers." And I was like, "You know what? I'm using this as my watchword, this kind of great rhythm that lets the singer have whatever attitude he wants." That was really an inspiration for me: that period of the Stones.

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Q. The "Exile" reissue finally came out this week. Have you heard it?

A. I have not. I ordered it, and I'm looking forward to it. It was not my favorite Stones album, I have to admit. "Sticky Fingers" was. But Jeff Kazee, he did a show at the Stone Pony and said, "Come on up and sing, we're going to do "Exile'." And I said, "Okay." So I had to go back and learn those songs again. And I really got much more into it.

Q. Was this before or after the album was recorded?

A. After.

Q. But it all just kind of fits in, this general theme.

A. Yeah. Sometimes it works that way. For whatever reason, things just seem to flow together.

Q. My thought -- and this may be totally off-base -- is that for years you were on a mission to show rock fans what a real R&B or blues-rock band was, and perhaps you stayed away from making a more rock-oriented record because you didn't want to be just another rock band. But now you feel freer to do different kinds of albums: You did the hardcore blues album (2001's "Messin' With the Blues") and the Tom Waits covers album (2008's "Grapefruit Moon"), and now you're doing a raw, Stones-y rock album.

Andrew Mills/The Star-LedgerHe's a pinball wizard: Southside Johnny, at the Silver Ball Museum in Asbury Park.
A. No. I don't think I felt that way, in the sense that I didn't feel like it was my mission to do that. It was just the kind of music I liked. But there was always the feeling that the rock stuff was covered. People were making great rock albums, and they didn't really need me chiming in.

Q. Does it also have to do with the musicians who are now in the Jukes?

A. I guess so. John Conte on bass is a real rock 'n' roll bass player and one of the great things that happened, too, is I wanted two guitars, and Andy York from John Mellencamp's band became available. I didn't really know him, but I just said, "Well, let's bring him in and see how it goes," and it was great. He and (guitarist) Bobby (Bandiera) just played exactly what you wanted, against each other, and off each other, and with each other. That's what I always wanted to hear: that kind of interplay.

Q. Is York now in the band, or is he just on the album?

A. He's on the album, and he's doing some shows with us. He'll be at B.B. King's in New York (on Saturday), but he'll be at the Stone Pony on July 2, too, which is great, because he's a real rock 'n' roll guitar player, and Bobby is too, obviously.

Q. Is Bobby back with you full time?

A. No, he's on the road with Bon Jovi. He plays with us whenever he can, and that's cool. Jon (Bon Jovi) has been great for us; he's been a real staunch supporter. If he wants to take Bobby away, that's okay.
Q. So if Bobby's not there and Andy York's not there, who's the guitarist?

A. Well, Glenn Alexander is playing right now, and we've got other people who come in and play, and I'm checking my options, as far as that's concerned.

Q. Are you going to try to have two guitarists at all the shows coming up?

A. I'm going to try. It's a matter of availability. And it's got to be the right guy -- it can't just be anybody. But if we can get the right people, yeah, definitely. You know, these songs are surprisingly easy to perform, for me. I thought they would be harder, because they're more uptempo, and more aggressive. But they kind of carry you along with them. It's the slower R&B songs that take a lot out of you. Even the mid-tempo stuff is harder, too: The beat is there, but you carry the load for the song. Whereas with a rock 'n' roll song, it's a whole assault. Mick Jagger doesn't have to carry the Stones, they carry him.
Q. At least you don't have to run around the stage as much as he does.

A. Yeah, I don't have as big a stage, thank goodness. But that's a good way to be. It's more fun when it's a real workout. You want to come offstage dripping sweat, and feeling like you did something.

Q. When you said before that your heart was crushed, did you mean that you put a lot into the Tom Waits album, and it didn't do as well as you would have liked?

A. And many other albums, yeah. There are no guarantees in this business, for sure.

It was funny, when I lived in Nashville, there would be banners along the road saying "Congratulations to blah-blah on his third Top 10 single in a row." Some country artist. And then six months later, he'd be dropped from the label. They have a short shelf life down there if you don't have hit after hit after hit.

I'm lucky that . . . I always felt like if I wanted to be a musician, I wanted to be one for life. So I don't have to worry about having hits. I just do whatever I want.

Jay Lustig may be reached at jlustig@starledger.com or at (973) 392-5850.